The Guest
by Enigmarr
Summary: A beautiful, cloudless day is ruined by the arrival of an unwanted visitor in the Once-ler's home. He claims that he will only stay a week- but can the Once-ler and the Lorax put up with him for that long? No pairings, rated for Oncie's later language.
1. Chapter 1

HAIIII~! This is my first story, so be nice to me, okay? Reviews are muchly appreciated :D

There won't be any pairings in this, and I'm sorry if any of the characters are a bit OOC or different to how you'd imagine them or just plain WRONG.

Also, I promise I'll tell you if I don't plan to finish a story ever, so you won't be left hanging, but it's extremely unlikely that I would leave you hanging. Hopefully. :3

HENCELY, ENJOY!

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**Chapter One- The Arrival**

The Once-ler sighed happily as he wrapped his arms around his knees, pulling them closer into his chest. His eyes trailed from the grassy hills from which sprouted the tall, colourful truffula trees to the clear blue sky, whereupon he gazed at the fluffy, pure white clouds that drifted lazily across the horizon.

His smile widened and, if possible, he relaxed even further under the warmth of the sun. It was a beautiful day, one of the best he'd experienced living there so far, and he was glad for it. Most of his time had been spent indoors as of late- designing possible accessories for his Thneed- all of which were of course discarded as the Thneed was cool enough already- and cooking for his woodland friends. Today was a rare break in his surprisingly hectic lifestyle, so enjoyable in fact that he hadn't even bothered to go into town that day. Sitting there, under the sun, right beside the river had seemed so tempting at the time, and he just couldn't help himself. He let go of his knees and fell back, folding his arms behind his head and slowly closing his eyes. Yep, today was perfect... so perfect... oh, if only it had stayed that way.

The Once-ler didn't have time to react to what happened in that next moment; he heard a mighty splash from the other side of the river, some high-pitched giggling, and before he knew it he was bolting upright, coughing and spluttering and wiping furiously at his eyes to rid himself of the water that some fiendish creature had seen fit to pour over him in a wave. He opened his eyes and scowled, glaring at a small group consisting of Pipsqueak and a few of the Hummingfish, who were all laughing madly at his expression. Needless to say, the Once-ler was not pleased.

"What was that for?" he groaned loudly, standing up and awkwardly inspecting his long limbs. His vest and shirt were completely soaked, along with large patches on his striped pants. A chill ran down his spine from the sudden cold and he shivered, peeling off his uppermost clothes as fast as his shaking fingers would allow. When his shirt and vest were laid out neatly on the ground beside him to dry he turned to his assaulters, staring down at their innocent, unknowing expressions with his hands on his hips. After a long moment he sighed heavily and sat down again, his expression carefully blank.

A moment passed. Then another, and another until the animals began to feel concern for their tall friend. Pipsqueak and the Hummingfish, who had been standing a metre away until that time, began to creep forward, worried that there was something wrong with their human. The worry quickly turned to mixed fear and delight as suddenly the Once-ler's arms shot forward, snatching the group up from its position and throwing them gently into the river, right before he jumped to his feet, snatched his clothes up into his arms and ran towards his tent. The gleeful laughter of the small group faded into the distance as his long legs quickly covered the distance between his tent and the river, and soon he was inside, giggling to himself as he put on his clothes, thanking the warm day for drying them so quickly. As soon as he was ready he emerged from the house once again, only to bring himself to an abrupt stop, barely in time to avoid tripping over a certain orange creature that just about reached his knees. Taking one look at the Lorax's annoyed expression, the Once-ler leant casually against the doorframe, grinning at the large ball of orange fur.

"Beanpole," the Lorax began, his voice holding a slight tone of disapproval.

Wondering what he could have done wrong this time, the Once-ler simply replied with a smooth; "Yyyyeeeesssss?"

"Care to explain?"

His mind immediately jumping to the incident with Pipsqueak, the Once-ler couldn't help but smile- or at least, begin to. One look at the Lorax's face told him that he'd done something bad, and the smile steadily faded, his tone holding just a hint of denial when he spoke. "They started it," he mumbled, scratching awkwardly at the back of his head. "Besides, it's not like it was really all that bad, it was just retaliation!"

The Lorax looked slightly confused, and all the more annoyed for it. "What? Retaliate at _who_?"

"Pipsqueak and some Hummingfish."

"_What_? _They_ made that mess?"

"What mess? I thought it would have dried out by now."

"Of course it's dried out, but it's left that awful sticky mess behind!"

". . . What?"

The Lorax stared at him for a short moment, his expression twisted in confusion- a look that was mirrored by the Once-ler. After a minute, the Once-ler knelt down, confronting the Lorax in what he felt was a more appropriate stance. He asked him to describe _exactly_ what the Lorax had found, and the creature did so gladly.

"I was walking through the forest," and at this, he puffed out his chest slightly, "doing my rounds, when I came across a bunch of bits of colourful plastic and _chip packets_! There was the remains of a fire there, so I figured a human musta done it- and _you're_ the only human 'round here beanpole, so fess up!"

"Why would I have done something like that?" the Once-ler asked in surprise, pulling back slightly.

"I don't know, maybe you decided to have one of your little "tea parties" again!"

"Hey, that is _not_ cool. I'll have you know that was a _picnic_, and it was a celebration, too!"

"Suddenly deciding that it _might_ be the birthday of one of the Swomee-Swans and wanting to have a party for it isn't an excuse, princess."

"It was-"

"_Quiet_!" the Lorax growled, interrupting the Once-ler's half-hearted excuse. "That's not the issue here!" He paused, his brow furrowing in thought. He stroked his moustache, glancing up at his tall companion every now and then and frowning even deeper. Finally he stopped, placed his hands behind his back and stared up at the Once-ler, his frown now so deep his bushy eyebrows came close to covering his eyes. It was quite a comical expression, but the Once-ler couldn't bring himself to even giggle as the Lorax spoke.

"If it wasn't you, then there's another human here," he said slowly, "and they're leaving their rubbish wherever they please."

"What should we do, then?" the Once-ler asked, his eyes wide in shock. He couldn't imagine the concept of another human being in the forest- sure, he had come there, but he'd only found the place by accident! Not even the residents of Greenville seemed to have any interest in coming here! Sure, it was a beautiful place and all, and a great place for camping or picnicking, or something similar...

Okay, so there were plenty of reasons why someone would want to come, but the Once-ler had spent so long living in the forest- just himself and the animals- that the possibility of any other human venturing into the forest had always eluded him. And now... now that there _was_ someone- causing harm, no less- he wasn't too sure he liked the idea.

The Lorax was just about to speak, when a loud knocking came from the back door.

"HellllOOOOOooohhhhh?"

The Once-ler and the Lorax immediately shot inside the tent, being sure to shut the front door quietly as they entered. They crept to the back of the room and- with the Lorax being held up by the Once-ler and for once, not being bothered by it- they peered anxiously out the window.

Standing there, staring directly at the door, was a man.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two- The Intruder**

The knocking continued relentlessly- a continuous, annoying, rapping on the hard wood. The man's voice never ceased either- now shouting; "HELLOOOOO, HELLOOOOOOOO IS ANYONE IN THERE? HHEEEELLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO?"

Finally, the Once-ler couldn't take it anymore. With the Lorax beside him, the Once-ler strode to the door and pulled it open, stepping back abruptly to avoid being hit by the man continually moving hand. Finally the man seemed to notice that the door was missing from beneath his hand and he stopped, staring at the Once-ler as if he couldn't believe his eyes.

"It's a giant," he mumbled to himself, causing the Once-ler to blush slightly. Before the tall man even had time to respond, the intruder pushed past him, dumping a fairly huge, filthy backpack right on the Once-ler's bed.

Now feeling genuinely annoyed, the Once-ler stepped forward, bringing himself to his full height. "Who are you?" he demanded in what he thought was a loud voice- but it didn't even seem to register in the mind of the slightly-shorter-than-average man. However, when the Lorax came forward and began to positively shout, his words were certainly heard.

"WHO ARE YOU?"

The man jumped and turned around, his eyes locking onto the Lorax and widening in shock. "Woah, what's that?" he exclaimed, pointing at it then turning a questioning gaze to the Once-ler. "This your pet?"

"What? No!" the Once-ler exclaimed, waving his hands wildly in denial. "This is-"

"I am the Lorax," the Lorax began in a hard voice, "and I speak for the trees. Who are you and what are you doing in the forest- and in this house?"

"Huh, it talks," the man said in simple shock. He was clearly a very thick man- in both weight and mind. He gave a small bow, addressing both the Once-ler and the Lorax as he introduced himself. "My name is Mr Yepti Yoose. I am a traveller, and I've decided that I will be staying here, so thanks for being so hospitable, Mr...?" he looked questioningly at the Once-ler, who bristled.

"First of all, my name is the Once-ler. Secondly-"

"The _Once-ler_? _That's_ your name?" Yoose laughed, slapping his knee. "That's retarded!"

"_You're_ retarded!" the Once-ler snapped, blushing and pointing to the door. "_Secondly_, you're not staying here! Get out!"

"And you speak for the trees, do you?" Yoose asked the Lorax, completely ignoring the Once-ler. "What are they saying right now, huh?"

"They're saying _get out_," the Lorax growled, glaring at the annoying man.

"Nope, I'm staying," he responded simply.

"Were you the one that left that mess of colourful plastic and chip packets out there?"

"You mean all the way back on the fringes? Yeah, I did. There weren't any bins around, and the fish-things kept tryin' to stop me from throwin' it all in the river, so I just left it there. No harm done, right?"

"GET. OUT."

At that moment, curious at all the noise coming from within the usually quiet tent, a few Bar-ba-loots and Swomee-Swans climbed and flew in through the window, stopping in a small clutter in the corner of the room and staring at the new arrival curiously. Yoose, for his part, didn't seem at all surprised at their sudden arrival and welcomed them cheerfully.

"Well well well, aren't you all cute? Oh- and beautiful, might I add," he added, winking at the Swomee-Swans, who giggled amongst themselves. Several of the Bar-ba-loots crept forward and Yoose scratched their heads gently, earning their affection instantly. Soon he was surrounded by a small, ever-growing gaggle of creatures as more arrived through the Once-ler's windows and the still-open back door. While Yoose was occupied with the creatures, the Once-ler bent down and leant close to the Lorax, whispering to an area of fur he assumed covered his ear.

"Well? What should we do?" he asked almost desperately, his hands itching to throw the intruder's bag from his bed and immediately clean the sheets- and the man himself.

The Lorax sighed, now not quite so sure himself. "Well... I suppose we'll just have to accommodate him until he decided to get going."

"_We_? Me, more like! He's filthy, and this is _my_ tent, you know! Where's he gonna sleep, anyway?"

"I figured I'd just use that bed," Yoose said smoothly, causing both the Lorax and the Once-ler to jump as they realised he must have heard them. The shock immediately disappeared to be replaced with annoyance and- on the Once-ler's part- dismay as Yoose pointed to the Once-ler's own bed. "Looks comfy enough."

"No way, NO WAY are you sleeping in my bed, that's _my bed_! It's already taken!" the Once-ler argued hotly.

Yoose shrugged. "Room enough for two," he said, winking slyly at the Once-ler, who cringed, his mouth opening and closing for lack of a response.

The Lorax glanced sympathetically at his friend and stepped forward. "That's his bed, and you're not sharing," he said shortly. "We'll allow you to stay here and we'll clean up the mess you made, but you follow our rules. You'll sleep on the floor, you'll listen to anything I or the Once-ler says, and you'll be gone after a week. Understood?"

"Sure, but I don't have a mattress to sleep on."

The Once-ler spoke up. "I can give you a blanket and you can curl up in that or something-"

"The floor's too hard."

"What did you sleep on when you were camping outside, then?"

"The ground."

"_Well why can't you-_"

"Ground's softer out there- it's hard wooden floors in here, it'd do my back in."

"_**Then sleep outside-**_"

"But I'm staying here."

The Once-ler was just about ready to start shouting at the man, but luckily the Lorax intervened, placing one of his furry hands on the Once-ler's leg. "How about this- you share the bed, but beanpole gets one end and Yoose gets the other. Does that sound fair?"

"Sounds good to me," Yoose said brightly, jumping to his feet. He promptly took off his jacket and shoes, dumping them on the floor along with his filthy socks. Leaving his belongings in the tent, Yoose headed for the front door with his new animal friends following behind, leaving the Once-ler and the Lorax behind, staring after him in disbelief.

It was to be one of the longest weeks the Once-ler had ever experienced.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three- Day One**

The first day was greeted with a wave of horror, shock and then anger when the Once-ler woke that morning only to find one of Yoose's feet in front of his face, and it wasn't about to get better.

He'd spent most of the previous afternoon- that perfect, beautiful day- wasted inside as he washed and dried all of Yoose's clothing, more of which was found confined to his backpack, and just as filthy as what he'd been wearing. Oh, and just to save some time, Yoose was only too happy to give him the clothes he'd been wearing at the time as well. The Once-ler was sure that, even with his knowledge of the many bizarre and sometimes gross creatures of the past and present, the Lorax had found the Naked Yoose to be a somewhat new and rather disturbing sight to behold.

Then, of course, was dinner- cooking three pots of vegetable soup for himself, the Lorax and the animals. The Once-ler had put on his apron and immediately been greeted with hearty guffaws and pokes at his masculinity, then a series of degrading jokes about women- to which Yoose would always say, "Oh, no offense Oncie, darling!". Yoose then ate a whole pot of soup himself, dribbling half of it down his front in the process and going to bed without even bothering to change. The Once-ler had tried to urge him to wash and change, but Yoose had already fallen into a deep, deep slumber.

Or so he thought. The Once-ler had done the dishes with the Lorax's help and put on his bunny pyjamas, and no sooner had he done so than a familiar, booming laugh reached his ears along with the cry; "HAH! BUNNIES! Oh, you're cute, sweetheart, you're cute," then a chorus of loud snores as it seemed Yoose had only woken himself to shout that single line.

The Once-ler wasn't sure he could even come close to bringing himself to sleep in the remaining half of the bed at that point, but with the rest of his house filled with animals that clearly had no intention of moving anytime soon, he'd really had no choice. A restless night spent struggling to sleep amidst Yoose's loud noises- which involved not only snoring, but a large amount of grunting and tossing as well- had gotten him no rest at all. That is, if you didn't count the final five minutes when he'd finally passed out, then woken to Yoose's foot.

And thus, the first day began.

The Once-ler sat up, pushing Yoose's foot away in disgust and narrowing his eyes as he first glared at the man, then scanned the rest of the room. The animals were all sleeping peacefully, undisturbed by Yoose's unending noises, which were currently giving the Once-ler a splitting headache. With the knowledge that he wouldn't be able to sleep anyway, the Once-ler rubbed his eyes and stood, making his way slowly to the bathroom. Stepping awkwardly over a Bar-ba-loot that had positioned itself in the doorway, the Once-ler closed the door behind him, then turned to face the rest of the bathroom.

Only to cry out in shock as he encountered the Lorax, standing directly in front of him on his sink, watching him carefully. The Once-ler gave a groan and rubbed his eyes again, breathing deeply to calm himself down. "What are you doing in here...?" he groaned, narrowing his bloodshot eyes at the creature.

The Lorax wasn't sure what to say. He gazed at the Once-ler in surprise, then worry. "You okay, kid? You don't look good."

"Oh, I _wonder_ why," the Once-ler moaned, shuffling over to the bath and twisting the knob. There was a moment of gurgling as the pipes summoned the water from the river and the heater struggled to warm it, but eventually there was hot water streaming from the tap and the Once-ler began to strip, uncaring of whether or not the Lorax saw him nude.

The Lorax frowned, his moustache twitching. "Yoose has been giving you a pretty hard time," he observed, his voice low. "Are you gonna be able to last the week?"

The Once-ler sighed heavily, wincing slightly as he slowly lowered himself into the bath, seizing his bubble mixture and dumping a fairly large blob of the stuff in the water. "I don't know," he said tiredly, leaning back in the now-bubbly bath. "The animals all seem to love him, but unless he stops being... _him_... I don't know... I really don't..." The Once-ler soaked his washer and placed it on his face, sighing deeply into the moist fabric. "Thanks for helping me try to get rid of him yesterday, too... You know, I think that's the first time you've actually said my name!" The Once-ler added the last part almost cheerfully, chuckling when the Lorax growled at him in response.

"Don't get too used to it, _Oncie_,it's just until he's out of your pretty little hair. Anyway, if he gets too unbearable, we'll just have to force him to leave and explain it to the others, okay?"

"Oh?" The Once-ler removed the washer, smirking at the Lorax. "Could it be that you're actually worried about me, Moustache?"

The Lorax snorted, shaking his head hopelessly and shrugging. "I don't know where you're getting that from, beanpole, but you're off the mark by a long shot. I just don't want this place getting too messy so you're not just spending all your time cleaning- you need to feed us too, you know!"

"Ah, of course," the Once-ler grinned happily, stretching and curling his toes. "Well, look forward to pancakes every morning, then. Two meals a day'll do ya."

"Yeah, yeah, do what you want, freak." The Lorax hopped down from the sink, his moustache twitching again- this time in a smile. "Good luck this week, beanpole. You're gonna need it."

The Once-ler watched the Lorax disappear through the door almost forlornly, dreading the time he would be done with his bath and would have to emerge to make breakfast... in the presence of Yoose. It was not to be avoided though, and soon the Once-ler was clean and dressed, and soon after, emerging into the main room of his tent. Yoose and the other animals were seated around his room and when he entered they all turned around, looking at him expectantly. The Once-ler sighed and headed for his tiny kitchen, pulling on his apron and setting to work.

It took most of the remaining morning, but the Once-ler cooked a grand total of twelve plates of pancakes, silently thanking the fact that he'd stocked up on pancake ingredients to a massive degree two days earlier. Yoose, as expected, ate two plates by himself and then some, complimenting the Once-ler's cooking and then ruining the cheerful effect by implying that he would make a great wife. Afraid that he was about to punch his guest in the face, the Once-ler quickly busied himself with the dishes, feeling slightly better as the Lorax silently came to help him. Yoose, for his part, left the premises to wander outside, leaving the Once-ler alone with the Lorax, Pipsqueak and several Swomee-Swans who were chatting animatedly to each other from on top of his cupboard. The dishes were finished in comfortable silence between the two, and stacked in a large, teetering pile beside the sink.

The work unfortunately didn't end there. The Once-ler then spent the next hour and a half cleaning the rest of his tent- mopping the floor, washing the sheets and gathering what little he could of the fur and feathers that now seemed a constant presence in the tent. Then, absolutely exhausted, the Once-ler collapsed into a chair, his head in his hands. The Lorax sat beside him, patting him comfortingly on the back.

"Good job, beanpole," he murmured, giving the human a wry smile.

The Once-ler nodded in response, then lifted his head, staring for a moment at the Lorax. He then stood, walked over to his bed and climbed in, kicking off his shoes as he buried himself beneath the covers.

"I'm taking a nap, okay?" he called tiredly, his voice muffled through his pillow. "If Yoose comes back, tell him to go away."

The Lorax nodded, jumped down from the table and headed for the door. The Once-ler heard the door click behind him and frowned, a single thought drifting through his mind as he sank into a deep, deep sleep.

The Lorax hadn't made fun of him once that day.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four- Day Two**

The Lorax strolled over the grassy hills of the forest, winding his way through the truffula tress, his eyes ever in search of the stubby, filthy man that called himself Yoose. He'd decided to have a chat with the man- who, close to expectations- had not gotten any more polite with the coming of the second day.

The Once-ler was as he'd been left the previous afternoon, curled up in his bed, catching up on the sleep he'd lost the night before. He hadn't even bothered trying to sleep during the night- instead, he'd taken his guitar and his drawing pad outside and spent the time strumming random tunes and jingles and designing various machines that could apparently teleport unwanted guests to unknown locations. The Lorax had sat beside him for a time, but retired after a few hours of chatting aimlessly with his very good acquaintance.

Now, he was on a mission. He was going to confront Yoose and, to the best of his ability, get the man to behave.

Of course, none of his efforts meant that he was _friends_ with the Once-ler. He didn't mind the boy too much, and sure, he was a hit with the animals and could be found to be surprisingly kind and generous on occasion, but he was just so _annoying_! Honestly, the Lorax had never come across such a thick-headed youth in all his long years as guardian! That being said, he hadn't come across many humans before, but if the Once-ler was a decent example of a normal human, he wasn't sure he wanted to. But he and the Once-ler were close enough at least for the Lorax to be able to see the stress steadily building inside the poor boy, and they were certainly close enough for the Lorax to want to help him. It was as simple as that, nothing more.

The Lorax emerged over the crest of a particularly large hill and, as expected, Yoose was sitting on the other side with a gaggle of creatures around him, distributing marshmallows from an unusually large bag that could only belong to the Once-ler. The Lorax approached him, placed his hands on his hips, and cleared his throat as loudly as he could.

It took three attempts for Yoose to notice, then finally he looked away from the animals and at the Lorax, his face brightening at the sight of the large, orange guy. He waved him over, ignoring the fact that he was but a metre away, and greeted him in a loud, booming voice usually reserved for conversing in a dense crowd.

"Lorax, how ya doin? Where's Oncie, he not with you?" he asked curiously, peering around the Lorax as if the Once-ler was going to suddenly pop out at any second.

'_He's FOUR TIMES MY SIZE, MORON!'_ the Lorax thought irritably, crossing his arms and speaking in a gruff tone. "He's resting."

"Ah, that's a shame. You know, I've only ever seen that fella in the mornings then he's straight off to bed- is he nocturnal or something?"

The Lorax's annoyance grew. "No, he's not-"

"Marshmallow?" Yoose offered, interrupting the Lorax and holding out one of the small, squishy objects. When the Lorax refused as politely as he could manage- which was, unsurprisingly, not very polite at all- Yoose shrugged and reverted his attention to the bag beside him, continuing to hand out marshmallows to the continually growing group of animals, each of whom was buzzing with enough energy that it seemed they would erupt at any second. The Lorax was being completely ignored, and he didn't like it one bit. He cleared his throat again and again, and after the fourth time he finally stepped forward, unfurled his arms and clenched his fists, scowling heavily.

"YOOSE!" he shouted in the man's face, causing him to jump and scoot backwards, staring at the Lorax in shock. Before he had time to speak, the Lorax strode forward, planting himself not a foot away and jabbing his finger in Yoose's direction. "I've had just about enough of this," he said in a low growl. "Now you are going to listen to me and you are going to answer my questions and you are _not_ going to interrupt. _Understood_?"

Yoose nodded wildly, the creatures around him steadily backing away from the Lorax. Normally their fear would bother him, but the Lorax was too busy confronting Yoose to care. "Where did you get the bag of marshmallows?" he asked quietly, his voice soft and yet no less threatening.

"Oncie-"

"_The Once-ler_."

Yoose swallowed and tried again. "I-I got it from On... the Once-ler's house. I saw him feedin' the bar-ba-loots once so I took a bag while he was busy makin' pancakes." Yoose laughed, some of his nervousness dissipating. "As if he could eat all those marshmallows anyway- he's got at least ten bags there, he'll never miss just one-"

"That idiot would notice if just _one_ went missing from all those bags, he loves 'em that much. Thinking that he'd miss an entire _bag_ disappearing is nothing short of idiocy." The Lorax huffed, crossing his arms again. "I get that you like these guys and you wanna be closer to 'em. But stealing is _not_ the way to go about it."

"Aw, that wasn't _stealing_," Yoose scoffed, leaning back in a much more annoyingly relaxed pose. "Me n' Onci-"

"The _Once-le_-"

"_Oncie_," Yoose repeated more firmly, "are _friends_. He knows me, I know him, we have a good time and that's why I have the right to call him by his nickname and you sayin' that I can't is nothing short of hypocritical."

"Oh?" the Lorax raised one of his large, bushy eyebrows. "How so?"

"Well, you call him beanpole, don'tcha? Isn't that the same?"

The Lorax opened his mouth, but Yoose spoke over him. "The answer to that, my furry friend, is _yes_. I'm not doin' any harm, am I, guys?" He pleaded his case to the critters around him, that had steadily started to approach again after the Lorax ceased shouting. They all nodded tentatively, watching the Lorax carefully for any signs of reproach.

None came. Sighing, the Lorax glared at Yoose, knowing fully well that threatening him wasn't going to work in the grand scheme of things- especially with the animals there to back him up. So, he decided to appeal to him in the one thing Yoose seemed comfortable with; delusion.

Uncrossing his arms and placing them behind his back, the Lorax smiled at Yoose, taking a small step back. "You're right, I'm sorry," he said calmly, ignoring the muscle twitching in his cheek. "It's just that I'm old, you're new- you know, it's a lot to get used to."

"Aw, that's fine," Yoose said, waving an arm dismissively. "I get it. Don't you worry, I'm a very understanding man."

"Clearly." The Lorax, paused, stroking his moustache thoughtfully. "Well then... Why don't I try appealing to you... _Man to man_, so to speak?"

At this, Yoose seemed to perk up a bit. He sat up properly, grinning a sly grin and nodding slowly. He looked around at the creatures beside him, then called out to all of them; "All right gang, it's been real fun with you all, but the Lorax and I need to have a private chat for a moment, okay?"

Though slightly disappointed, the group nodded and dissipated, soon leaving the Lorax and Yoose to themselves, alone amidst the truffula trees. With the animals gone, the area was quiet enough that when Yoose clapped his hands the sound almost seemed to echo around them, spreading throughout the hills. The Lorax felt a small spark of irritation at this, but when Yoose leant forward, clearly ready to listen, he ignored it and moved on, taking a deep breath to prepare himself.

"Alright," he began, "I'll be honest- there are some issues that you've created during your stay here, and if you want to stay for the rest of the week, I'd suggest you try to fix them, if you would."

"Issues?" Yoose asked in confusion. "What issues? I haven't found any-"

"That's _probably_ because you're the one _causing_ the issues," the Lorax said tersely.

"Really?" Yoose frowned, stroking the black stubble that decorated his chin. "Alright, go on."

Feeling pleased that Yoose was actually paying attention, the Lorax went on. "First off, you're a slob. You need to clean yourself at _least_ once every two days- once a day, depending on how dirty you get. You should change whenever you get your clothes overly-filthy, and try your hardest to _eat_ the food the Once-ler gives you, not eat half of it and use the rest for body art. Got it?"

Yoose nodded, grinning. "Is that all? Well, I s'ppose I could do that easy 'nuff. Anything else?"

"Quit taking the Once-ler's marshmallows, and quit makin' so much trouble for him. Stuff like making a mess wherever you go, maybe you could help him with the dishes, and _stick to your side of the bed_. Understood?"

Yoose nodded again, his grin widening. "_That's_ what Oncie's been complaining about? Hah! Oh, bless him," he muttered, wiping away an invisible tear. "So the big guy can't handle a little housework, eh? All right, I'll help him." Yoose laughed and stood, unaware of the glare that the Lorax sent him as he started the trek back towards the tent. The Lorax watched him go, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes.

For some reason, he wasn't sure that his discussion with Yoose had done more good than harm.


	5. Chapter 5

**WOAH, I'M ACTUALLY DOING AN AUTHOR'S NOTE FOR ONCE!  
**

So yeah, I wasn't too sure about this chapter- stuff like "Does it move too fast? Do things still make sense? Does this have anything to do with anything?" So PLEASE feel free to tell me whether you think it's good, bad, horrible and deserves to be burned or praised as the holy tome, stuff like that :D

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**Chapter Five- Day Three**

The Once-ler wasn't sure he could take much more of this.

He wasn't sure how it had happened, but Yoose had gotten even more unbearable as of the day before. He'd been woken up not even an hour into his nap by Yoose rushing inside, shaking him awake and yelling something about cleaning the house.

"_It's clean enough, let me sleep!"_ the Once-ler had tried to say in his quiet, sleepy voice, but Yoose's thick ears didn't register his complaint. So, the Once-ler had spent the rest of the time until dinner putting away the dishes that were stacked precariously atop one another, cleaning the floor, the stove, the frid- EVERYTHING. He hadn't slept at all that night either, and now was in a kind of daze- his mind half-in, half-out of reality.

Yoose had then tried out something that he saw fit to call "helping". The Once-ler wasn't sure that standing next to him and providing the opposite of moral support, then knocking dishes to the ground with his clumsy hands and leaving mud tracks all over the newly-cleaned floor was helping, but who was he to judge? After all, he was a mere housewife, incapable of understanding the superior actions of the higher male. Sure, Yoose stole a bag of his marshmallows, but maybe it was for some higher purpose- maybe he was building a spaceship. After all, it would be the only reason good enough for the Once-ler to forgive him for it.

The Once-ler was now doing the dishes- as usual- with the Lorax- as usual- with Yoose around- not usual and _definitely_ not appreciated. The man had been talking constantly all morning, describing his incredible adventures to a relatively large crowd consisting of the Bar-ba-loots, Swomee-Swans, Hummingfish and the displeased Once-ler and Lorax.

"So I reached the top of the grassy hill and looked around- not only was I surrounded by hungry panthers, but a bunch a' eagles had their eyes on me too!"

The Once-ler whispered to the Lorax; _"I'm no expert on animals and their habitats, but isn't that a bit off?"_ To which the Lorax replied in a growl; _"For so many reasons."_

Unaware of the murmuring behind him, Yoose went on, unfazed. "But I didn't panic, because I knew how I could get out of there. I had a jar of pepper in my pocket-"

The Once-ler interrupted; "No-one has _jars_ of pepper-"

"So I whipped it out- and as you all know, panthers are allergic to pepper-"

The Lorax took his turn; "Where'd you get _that_ from-"

So I got 'em with just the _tiniest_ bit and they started coughin' and sneezin' like crazy! Then they ran off, which gave me time to run back down the hill, grab my bag and beat away the eagles that were now comin' at me from above. Then, that was it. I went on my merry way and found myself here."

"Wait, so this grassy place was the truffula forest?" the Once-ler asked in disbelief.

"That's right, my friend," Yoose said proudly. The animals were staring at him in wonder and excitement, chatting amongst themselves about what the Once-ler assumed was the presence of panthers and eagles in their home. After all, if Yoose said they were there, who knows? Maybe they only came out when everyone wasn't looking! The Once-ler asked about this, and as expected, Yoose stated that he was the only human ever to have seen the majestic beasts usually found in deep jungles.

Proud with the effect that he'd made, Yoose stood up from his position on the bed, walking over to the Once-ler and standing beside him. He leant forward slightly, inspecting the clean dishes, then went back to his position, shaking his head and sighing, making small "tut tut" noises under his breath.

Irritated, the Once-ler turned to him, struggling to keep his face straight. "What is it, Yoose?" he asked through gritted teeth.

Yoose stopped tutting and looked at the Once-ler, a wry smile on his face. He glanced between the dishes and the Once-ler twice more, then shook his head, sighed again and strutted off, hands clasped behind his back. Soon enough he'd strutted his way right out of the tent with the animals behind him, heading in the general direction of the river. The Once-ler watched him walk, spatula in hand and ready to be flung at any moment, should the man decide to come back inside. When nothing happened, the Once-ler returned to his work, his brow deeply furrowed and his hands jerking with fury. The Lorax looked at him sympathetically, placing one of his small, furry hands on his arm. At this, the Once-ler sighed, shoulders slumping.

"I don't know how much longer I can put up with him," he moaned, quickly drying off his hands to rub his eyes tiredly. There honestly wasn't too much left to do, but in his exhausted state, it seemed to him a mountain of dirty plates and pans. Having the Lorax dry everything was helping enormously, and soon enough they were finally, mercifully done. Ignoring Yoose's earlier insistence that he put away the dishes, the Once-ler dried his hands once more, walked to his bed and collapsed upon it, falling asleep almost immediately. The Lorax took one last look at him and left, closing the door gently behind him.

. . .

To his shock, when the Once-ler woke up, he was feeling well-rested and ready for another sleepless night. Confused, he sat up, looking around his tent, which was revealed to be devoid of life apart from himself. Feeling an odd sensation of foreboding, the Once-ler got out of bed, peering out the window. He couldn't see Yoose, the Lorax or any of the other creatures at all, despite the fact that there were usually at least ten of them running about his home. Usually, this might be a cause for concern... usually... maybe he should worry...

The Once-ler let out a quiet cheer and rushed over to his cupboard, pulling from within the depths all his knitting tools, as well as a large bag of marshmallows to devour. He made himself a cup of tea and sat down at his table, glancing anxiously at the door, half-expecting Yoose to rush through at any second and ruin his quiet evening. When nothing happened, a surge of happiness came upon the Once-ler and he shoved five marshmallows into his mouth, setting to work on making scarves and little jackets for the creatures of the forest. Winter was coming, and it was getting cold- and seeing as they apparently couldn't stand sleeping outside any more, he'd decided that they'd probably want some clothing as well.

The Once-ler had just finished a cute little pair of gloves for Pipsqueak when a small shout dragged his attention to the window. Abandoning his knitting, he jumped up and ran over, peering outside, his eyes widening in horror. Yoose and the animals had apparently been playing in the river, and still were- having fun and yelling amongst themselves- while the Lorax supervised. What they had failed to notice was a small bear- a small, clumsy bear who couldn't swim- had started drifting downstream, desperately holding onto a truffula fruit that miraculously was able to hold up both Pipsqueak and itself. He was floating away fast, shouting for help, but his small voice was drowned out by Yoose's roaring laughter. Leaping away from the window, the Once-ler ran out of his tent, heading straight for the river.

'_Of course this would happen, of course it would!'_ the Once-ler thought furiously, his long legs taking no time at all to reach the stream. Ignoring Yoose's look of surprise at his sudden presence, and the booming greeting that came with it, the Once-ler ran alongside the water until he was neck-and-neck with Pipsqueak, who saw him coming and squealed in a mixture of relief, joy and fear.

The Once-ler was just ahead of Pipsqueak when he jumped in, causing a great splash to erupt around them. He immediately snatched the tiny Bar-ba-loot, holding him close to his chest as the two were continually dragged along by the stream.

The Once-ler, feeling oddly disoriented, reached out quickly with his arm and seized the bank, holding on for dear life. He urged Pipsqueak to climb across his arm and onto the grass, which the creature did so as quickly as he could, then the Once-ler dragged himself up as well, panting heavily and coughing up small amounts of water. A quick check on Pipsqueak informed the Once-ler the little Bar-ba-loot was okay, so he picked him up and started walking towards Yoose, the Lorax and the other partygoers, who had removed themselves from the river and were now rushing towards him.

Yoose was the first to speak, his expression confused, yet somehow, still somewhat cheerful. He started talking in a rather jovial tone, and it was that, perhaps, that enraged the Once-ler more than anything. "Hey, Oncie, what was all tha-?"

"SHUT UP!" the Once-ler shouted, still panting. "DON'T YOU _DARE_ SPEAK TO ME RIGHT NOW!"

Fuming, the Once-ler strode past Yoose, holding a shivering Pipsqueak close as the two headed for the Once-ler's tent. On his way, he felt mildly satisfied as he heard the Lorax, voice filled with fury, begin to berate Yoose. Once there, the Once-ler prepared a steaming hot bath for himself and Pipsqueak, then helping the small creature get dry. When all was done, the Once-ler sat the Bar-ba-loot on the table, handing him a hot chocolate and a small pile of marshmallows. Pipsqueak squealed in joy and began to eat, chewing on the marshmallows with an air of bliss. The Once-ler smiled at him, scratching him behind the ears and yawning at the same time. The tent was still empty apart from the two, and the Once-ler, despite his hatred for Yoose, couldn't help but feel just a tiny bit guilty about shouting at him.

"Do you think I went overboard?" he asked Pipsqueak in a murmur, wondering in the meantime whether or not the bear could understand him. Pipsqueak didn't reply and the Once-ler chuckled wryly, leaning his head in his hands. ". . . He should have seen you... shouldn't have been so loud, then he would have heard you... But the others didn't see you either- not even the Lorax! So I guess it wasn't _entirely_ his fault... maybe..."

The Once-ler groaned, rubbing his eyes furiously. Giving Pipsqueak one last pat, he stood, heading for the door. He walked down to where Yoose was still standing beside the river, talking in a low tone to the Lorax and the rest of the animals. When he saw the Once-ler coming he immediately climbed to his feet and approached him, talking as he came.

"Look, Oncie, I'm sorry," he said quickly, somewhat surprising the taller man with the sincerity in his voice. "We shouldn't have been so loud- if you hadn't heard him, I dunno what would've happened. So..." He trailed off, both he and the crowd of creatures around him looking up apologetically at the Once-ler, who sighed heavily, exchanged irritated glances with the Lorax, and rubbed his eyes again.

"Fine," he said after a long moment's silence. "I get that you didn't mean for it to happen, but is it so hard for you to just _be careful_? Seriously, you've done nothing but cause trouble from the minute you arrived and it's getting _really annoying._ Something serious could have happened to Pipsqueak, and it was all because you were so freaking careless! Just... I don't know, just-" The Once-ler broke off, waving his arms wildly as he struggled to find a reasonable way to word his message. "Just quit being so _ANNOYING_!"

"So... am I forgiven?" Yoose asked, looking up hopefully, the animals around him doing the same.

A moment passed, then the Once-ler nodded, albeit reluctantly. "Fine. But from now on-"

"Yeah yeah, I'll be careful, thanks doll!" Yoose called as he rushed towards the house with the animals in tow, laughing as he went. The Once-ler was left alone with the Lorax, silently fuming and clenching his fists. The Lorax saw this and moved closer, placing one of his hands on the Once-ler's leg. Oddly enough, it was actually quite calming.

"Sorry I didn't notice him sooner, beanpole," he said quietly. "Thanks for savin' him."

The Once-ler sat down where he stood, letting his head fall into his hands. "Don't worry about it," he replied hoarsely, yawning at the same time. "I'm just glad I heard him..."

"We all are. Really." The Lorax paused. "Thanks for forgiving Yoose, too. I wouldn't have blamed you if you'd decided to kick him out there and then, but the others were feeling pretty guilty about it too- they reckon it's their fault as much as his, so if only he was punished..." The Lorax shrugged. "You know. All that sort of stuff..."

The Once-ler nodded, sighing for what felt like the thousandth time that night. "I know... I just... wish this wasn't so hard, you know? I mean, how can just _one guy_ possibly cause so many issues?"

The Lorax gently patted the Once-ler's back. "Four more days, beanpole, four more days.

Four more days.


	6. Chapter 6

**HAIIIIIIII~!  
**

****I'm so sorry it's taken so long for me to upload the next chapter- I had exams last week, and I had to catch up on a lot of my distance ed stuff this week, and OH IT WAS SO STRESSFUL.

But now I'm back, and hopefully I'll be able to update every few days or so from now on :)

and as always, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK REVIEWS ARE MY NUTRIENTS THEY SUSTAIN ME.

THEY ARE THE PANCAKES THE MY ONCE-LER

THE MARSHMALLOWS TO MY PANCAKES

THE THNEED TO MY GREED

So yeah, don't be afraid to tell me if you don't like something or whatever :3

* * *

**Chapter Six- Day Four**

Yoose woke up the next morning to the smell of pancakes, wafting towards him from the kitchen. He breathed in the delicious scent and opened his eyes slowly, grinning when he saw the usual crowd of Bar-ba-loots, Swomee-Swans and Hummingfish strewn about the house. The Lorax was there as well, standing beside the Once-ler as the boy prepared breakfast, the two chatting quietly amongst themselves.

Well now, that was no way to start the day!

"MORNING!" Yoose boomed, jumping out of bed.

His voice had an incredible effect- as one, the animals, the Lorax and the Once-ler jumped in fright, causing various items to come cascading down from the shelves as they were knocked about by the Swomee-Swans' wings, the Lorax to drop the mug he was holding, which very near came to shattering when it hit the ground, and the Once-ler to yelp as he gripped the wrong part of the frying pan and gave himself a light burn. The tap was on within seconds and his hand was under rushing cold water, and all the while Yoose laughed and guffawed at the enormous chain effect.

"Well, well, well! Bit clumsy aren't we?" he chuckled, clapping the Once-ler on the back before heading to the bathroom and practically slamming the door behind him.

The Once-ler muttered darkly under his breath, then went to his cupboard and pulled out a single, soft, knitted glove that he had made for himself earlier- it would guard his burnt hand at least a little, and it was definitely better than nothing. As if it wasn't bad enough, he feared he was getting a cold as well- he'd been sniffing all morning, and with Yoose's waking, he was starting to cough. Without saying anything, the Once-ler simply returned to preparing pancakes, and soon had all the animals gathered on his bed, including Yoose, devouring plate after plate of the stuff. As usual, when he was done, he started the dishes, and Yoose went outside to frolic with the animals.

As Yoose left the house, he glanced briefly behind him at the Once-ler and the Lorax, as usual stuck in their usual position at the sink. _'Now that's no way to spend a day!'_ Yoose thought to himself, closing the door behind him as he and the other critters found a nice spot to sit amongst the truffula trees. Once everyone was settled, Yoose addressed his followers with a wide grin on his face.

"I think we should take Oncie out," he said cheerfully. "Anyone know if there's a town nearby?"

The animals all nodded excitedly, pointing in the general direction of the town. Yoose laughed and shook his head, saying; "Ah, I shoulda known you would! Alright, let's go get 'im, then. He's been spending way too much time inside, I reckon!"

. . .

The Once-ler was sitting at his table with the Lorax, drinking a steaming hot mug of tea and preparing for his nap, when suddenly Yoose burst through the door, knocked the Lorax from his seat and took it for himself, leaning against the table with an excited look on his face. The Once-ler went to help the Lorax up, but Yoose grabbed his one gloved hand, directing all of the Once-ler's attention to him as meanwhile the Lorax grumbled, climbing to his feet and glaring at Yoose.

"Oncie!" Yoose exclaimed, his face barely a foot away from the Once-ler's. "I asked the critters, and they say there's a town nearby!"

"Yeah, why?" the Once-ler grumbled unhappily. Suddenly, his face lit up in excitement. "Are you thinking of staying at a hotel?" he asked hopefully.

"Nope!" Yoose said loudly, causing the Once-ler's face to fall in disappointment. "But I reckon we should take a trip into town!"

"Why?"

"Oncie, the only times I ever see you, you're inside doing one thing or another. You need to get outside more often! Look, see? You're so pale! Get a tan!"

"I've got a cold," the Once-ler said, sniffing.

"Well then, all the more reason!" Yoose cried, holding out his hands as if it were obvious. "You need to get out there- get some sunlight, exercise a little! Sweat out that nasty cold!"

"That's not really how it works-"

"Works for me all the time! Come on, let's go!"

"Don't- want-" the Once-ler stammered weakly as he was pulled to his feet and hauled out the door, followed closely by the Lorax. It took a while, but he managed to break free when they were only a short distance from the tent, and he faced Yoose with a sigh of resignation.

"Fine, I'll come to town with you for a little while- a _little_ while. But I want to take Melvin."

"Who's Melvin?" Yoose asked in confusion.

The Once-ler raised his eyebrows. "He's my mare. Haven't you met him?"

"I haven't seen him at all!"

"Well he's been here this whole time, you know. He sits with me outside during the night."

". . . Okay then. Well, this'll be a great chance to meet him, won't it!" With that, Yoose grabbed the Once-ler's hand again and strode back to the tent to search for Melvin, all the while ignoring the Once-ler's and the Lorax's directions to where Melvin was grazing out the back. The mare looked up when the three emerged from around the side of the tent, his brow furrowing noticeably at the sight of Yoose, clearly harassing his human. He immediately made his way to his close friend, barrelling through their linked hands, effectively separating the two. He then proceeded to glare at Yoose, standing protectively in front of the tall, lanky man beside him.

What Melvin didn't know yet was the fact that Yoose automatically assumed he was best friends with everyone, so he was unprepared when Yoose jumped forward, taking him by the neck in a tight hug, scratching him furiously on the head and laughing while he introduced himself to the animal and went on about his greatness and the friendship he and the Once-ler shared.

What Yoose didn't know was that Melvin wasn't the type to tolerate anyone he was displeased with. Ten seconds passed and Melvin decided he'd had enough, and before he could say another word, Yoose was sent flying backwards, landing flat on his back several metres away, his eyes wide in shock. Melvin was just about to snort in satisfaction when Yoose jumped to his feet, unharmed, laughing loudly as he brushed himself off.

"Well, you're a wild one, aren't you!" he exclaimed, approaching the mare once more, though this time he stopped when they were a metre apart. He crossed his arms, admiring the beast. "Yep! Fine mare you've got here, Oncie! Nice and strong! Not very friendly, though!"

While Yoose laughed and Melvin glared, the Lorax tugged on the Once-ler's pants, gesturing for him to come closer. The Once-ler leaned down and the Lorax whispered in his ear; "Do you want me to come with you?"

The Once-ler sighed, shaking his head. "It's fine- you need to stay here and look after the animals. If I bring Melvin, I should be fine." The Lorax nodded and the Once-ler straightened, giving a small cough that soon deepened, causing both the Lorax and Melvin to frown in worry. Yoose then took his cue and seized the Once-ler's hand for the third time, pulling him along while the Once-ler directed them to town.

It took just over an hour to reach the outskirts, mainly due to the Once-ler's exhaustion, alongside Yoose's insistence that they both ride Melvin- an idea that obviously failed and ended up costing them at least ten minutes in walking time. That, along with a rather nasty bruise on Yoose's backside.

Nonetheless, Yoose was cheerful as they walked through the bright streets, surrounded by cheerful people going about their daily business- though he couldn't help but notice, with a small frown, that many of the people tended to look at the Once-ler with a hint of animosity. Had Oncie done something bad? Was he actually a criminal? Was it his outfit?

Yoose shook his head, grinning broadly. Oh, who cared? No-one, that's who! All that mattered was that they had fun.

. . .

The Once-ler was not having fun. Judging by the look on Melvin's face, he wasn't either. The mare shot an unhappy look in the Once-ler's direction and the boy sighed, sniffing quietly. "I know, I know," he mumbled, gently stroking Melvin's back. "Hopefully he'll get bored soon and we can go back. Or- even better, maybe he'll find somewhere else to stay!" he added hopefully. His cheerfulness didn't even last a second. "No, he'll be coming back, no use wishing otherwise... Sorry for bringing you along, buddy. I know he's torture."

Yoose had actually run ahead of them, confronting almost every person he came across and shaking their hands, giving a quick self-introduction that included pointing to the Once-ler and announcing him as his friend. Surprisingly, and quite pleasantly, the people would then discard their irritation at the boy who sang incessantly about a product they didn't want and would look at him with sympathy- a look that Yoose was unaware of as he moved on to the next unfortunate victim. Occasionally he would dart into a shop and come out just as quickly, talking to the Once-ler loudly about how terrible all the shops were.

The third time this happened and the Once-ler was left standing out in the street, rubbing his still-sore hand and accepting pitied looks from the people while he waited for Yoose, Melvin nudged the Once-ler comfortingly in the side, smiling as best he could. The Once-ler returned the look and all seemed happy for a moment- that is, until Yoose emerged from the shop, his naturally loud voice floating effortlessly above the rabble of the people around him.

"Well, that place was _useless_! Did you see some of the stuff they had in there? Who needs a _spice rack_? Just keep 'em on the bench! Hah! Idiots!" Yoose shook his head, grinning wryly. "Alright, let's go."

The Once-ler nodded weakly and followed along with Melvin, only to stop a moment later as Yoose rushed into an old antique store. The process repeated itself at least five times before Yoose discovered that he'd run into a restaurant, this time pulling the Once-ler in after him. As expected, Yoose ordered five courses which he didn't have the money to pay for, so the Once-ler decided to skip his meal and keep the bill as low as possible. As it was, he was barely able to pay for Yoose's part, grumbling unhappily to himself as he walked out the door and met Melvin outside.

"Come on, let's go," he muttered, keeping his hand against Melvin's neck. Several minutes of slow shuffling passed before the Once-ler stopped and straightened, looking around in confusion.

"Where's Yoose?" he asked, glancing at Melvin, who shrugged. The man's voice hadn't been heard in quite a while- when usually it only disappeared for a minute at most. Despite his hatred for the man, the Once-ler couldn't help but worry. Yoose had never been to this town before, so he couldn't possibly know his way around. Maybe he'd gotten lost- maybe he'd run into a gang of thugs! The Once-ler's heartbeat quickened at the thought of this. There was no way that Yoose could come across a tough guy and not get beaten up- he was too annoying to leave unharmed. Or maybe he'd hurt himself and was lying on the side of the road somewhere- alone and unable to walk back.

The Once-ler broke into a run, thoughts of Yoose's condition growing increasingly horrible the longer it took to find him. As much as Melvin hated the man, the mare helped as well, the two running down the streets, calling out Yoose's name repeatedly at full-volume. Suddenly the Once-ler stopped, tempted to smack himself in the face for being so stupid. How hard was it to ask for directions?

He turned to the first person he saw- a young woman cleaning up tables outside a cute little café to his left. Rushing over to her, the woman immediately looked up, smiling at his hasty approach. "Are you all right?" she asked kindly.

"A-ah-" the Once-ler stammered, panting heavily to catch his breath, coughs littering his speech. "Y-you... wouldn't happen to have seen... a short, thick man... come past here, would you? H-he's... reeeaaallllly loud."

"Oh, him? Yeah, I saw him come past here a while ago, looking frantic. He was calling out for someone called "Oncie" or something like that."

The Once-ler groaned and set off once more, thanking the woman as he left. Melvin followed close behind, his hooves clomping noisily on the cobbled streets. Minutes passed and they had searched street after street, always heading in the direction that the woman had pointed until finally they reached a dead end.

The Once-ler stared at the solid grey wall before him, panting heavily, his heart sinking. "He... he's not... here..." he gasped, glancing at Melvin helplessly. "Where could he have...?" The Once-ler trailed off, his head swimming. He began to feel dizzy and sat down, his vision darkening around the edges. Clutching his head, the Once-ler breathed as deeply as he could as he began to cough, his throat burning at the sensation.

"I knew it," he muttered hoarsely. "I knew I shouldn't have come, I should have just stayed home and rested..."

Melvin snorted in worry and nudged the Once-ler on the shoulder, leaning close to his friend. The Once-ler smiled in response and nodded, wrapping one of his long, lanky arms around Melvin's neck. The mare helped him stand and they started to head back, walking as fast as they could with the tall young man leaning on the animal's back. They made it back to the main street and the Once-ler felt a little better, sitting down on the side of the street, looking around in a last-ditch effort to find Yoose.

"If we don't find him soon, we're just gonna leave, okay? Then all we can do is hope he doesn't remember the way back."

The Once-ler smiled at his words, knowing they were hollow. He hated Yoose- he really, truly did- but it wasn't like he wished the man any real harm. He took a moment longer to rest before standing again, then suddenly his eyes widened in shock as they came across a short, wide man standing in the distance, waving frantically in his direction.

"There he is," he murmured in surprise. After all their searching- all their effort- they were going to find him like this? It seemed a tad disappointing, to say the least. Still, it was better than not finding him at all... at least, in theory it was.

Yoose began running towards them and the Once-ler waited patiently for him to arrive, bracing himself for the inevitable impact. It came sooner than he would have liked.

"ONCIE!" Yoose shouted, his voice hammering against the Once-ler's sore skull. The Once-ler grimaced and clutched at his head, groaning quietly under his breath. Yoose didn't seem to notice. "Where've you been? I've been looking everywhere for you!" He burst into laughter. "Well, at least I found you. Now don't you go running off again, little missy!"

Yoose wagged his finger condescendingly at the Once-ler, who was busy trying to restrain Melvin from biting it off. Again, Yoose remained ignorant and turned away, striding in the opposite direction as fast as his legs could take him. The Once-ler and Melvin followed behind him, wondering whether or not Yoose actually knew where he was going. As it turned out, he did not. The three were soon lost again, standing in front of another dead end, in front of which was a large pile of boxes stacked atop one another to form a makeshift staircase to the roof of a building. The Once-ler took one look at the poorly-made wooden cubes, nails sticking out everywhere, creaking under their own weight, and his heart nearly stopped.

"Yoose, don't-" he began, but of course, Yoose had already started climbing. The man laughed away the Once-ler's concerns and made it to the top unharmed, turning back to laugh even harder at the Once-ler's worries.

"See? It's fine! You worry way too much, Oncie!"

The Once-ler sighed in frustration. "Fine. Well, can you see the way back to the forest?"

"Yeah, it's just over there!" Yoose pointed somewhere over the Once-ler's shoulder, then wobbled a little. The Once-ler stiffened, looking down at the man's feet- and at the box that shook beneath them. The Once-ler felt a jolt of fear and he ran towards the boxes, climbing them as fast as he could, all the while calling out to Yoose.

"Yoose! Get down!" he shouted, his words frantic.

Yoose, oblivious, looked down at him and grinned widely. "Oncie, what did we just discuss...? Stop being such a worryw-"

Yoose broke off with a yelp when the box beneath him finally gave way and he pitched forwards, falling towards the Once-ler, who had made it halfway up the pile. The Once-ler only had time to gasp before Yoose's heavy frame collided with his and he was thrown backwards, sent hurtling towards the ground. The Once-ler threw out a hand to break his fall-


	7. Chapter 7

**O HAI, EVERYONE!  
**

****So it's come to my attention that I keep saying "I'll have it up soon!" and then I fail to upload for at least a week.

For this, I apologize -.-

*bows*

This chapter is also shorter than usual, because I suffered severe writer's block and wuz all liek "SCREW THIS I 'M JUST GONNA MAKE THIS ONE SHORT CUZ OTHERWISE IT DOESN'T FLOW RIGHT SO I'LL JUST MAKE THE NEXT CHAPTER RIDICULOUSLY LONG!"

AND IT'S TRUE.

The next chapter is going to be longer than any other, not only to make up for the shortness of this one, but also it will be the very last chapter in this series :3

IT HAS BEEN AN HONOUR TO WRITE FOR ALL OF YOU AND I WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO ALL THE TIME FOR EVER. :D

Hencely, the norm- reviews are devoured with glee, thneeds are thrown and breakfast mixed in an unholy fusion of marshmallow and pancake.

(And also, excuse the terrible plot for this chapter- several people sent me reviews saying, "Oh no, is Oncie going to go to the doctor now?" And to be perfectly honest, at that moment, I remembered for the first time the existence of those with the healing profession. I had honestly not even considered that a doctor would come into the picture, and I had already started writing the new chapter, and I was far too lazy to rewrite it. So sorry to all those people smarter than me, I am just a simple duck).

ENJOY YOUR SHORT CHAPTER.

* * *

**Chapter Seven- Day Five**

". . .-ler..."

"-nce-ler!"

"Hey, beanpole, get up!"

The Once-ler opened his eyes slowly with a groan, hearing great sighs of relief as he did so. His head was pounding and his vision was blurred, so he blinked tiredly until it cleared. When it did, he couldn't help but cringe a little, gritting his teeth at the sight of Yoose's face inches away from his own, the man's disgusting breath pervading his nostrils. Thankfully, once it was clear that the Once-ler was awake he pulled away from the bed on which he lay, grinning broadly. It was then that he saw the rest of the room, revealing to him the Lorax, now glaring and unsuccessfully attempting to shove Yoose further away from his very-good acquaintance, and what looked to be every single animal in the forest, all huddled around his tent. They all looked extremely happy that the Once-ler had woken but something seemed... odd...

When nothing became immediately apparent, the Once-ler gave a mental shrug and focused on other things- the aching all over his body, for example. Then...

"Wh-what's...? he began in a hoarse voice, clearing his throat. He shifted, pulling his left arm up and out of the covers, wincing and gasping in pain when the slightest touch sent jolts of agony through his wrist. When he finally got his arm into view, his eyes flew wide in shock, his mouth opening only to emit a small whimper.

His arm, from his hand to his elbow, was held straight with two short wooden poles and wrapped inside a thick layer of bandages. His fingers were stiff and sore, but it was nothing compared to the wrist itself, which throbbed deeply and continuously with pain. Reaching out with his other hand, the Once-ler gingerly felt the area. He'd had experience with broken bones before- no thanks to Brett and Chett- and it didn't take him long to deduce that his arm was broken from his wrist to an area halfway up his forearm, though luckily it didn't seem that any of the pieces were out of place.

Psychic as ever, Yoose commented on this fact. "I've got some experience with broken bones, so I moved the bits back as best I could."

"And... h-how...?"

The Lorax had given up on moving Yoose and moved back, sitting down cross-legged beside the Once-ler's pillow and looking down on the boy in sympathy. "What was the last thing you remember?" he asked gently.

The Once-ler thought this rather odd- the Lorax had _never_ been so nice with him. Well, not before Yoose came, anyway. He stayed silent about it, feeling a small bubble of happiness rise within him at the thought.

But there was no time to dwell on it. Racking his brains, the Once-ler struggled to recall the last moments before he apparently had passed out- his brain ached with the effort, but he pressed on anyway, his voice soft and slow when he replied.

"I- I think... Yoose had... climbed up onto the boxes, and... Yeah, they were about to break, so I called out and started climbing up as well, so I could... stop him... but... I think... he knocked me down... or something..." The Once-ler groaned and stopped, his headache becoming too much to continue. He thought he recalled something about the landing, but was too tired to care, instead leaving it to the Lorax to continue. The creature did so gladly.

"Well, what happened after that was that this _idiot_ here fell on you- landed on you too, no less. Apparently you threw out your arm to break your fall, but the distance of the fall and Yoose's weight on top of you shattered it. You're lucky, beanpole- if your bones weren't so strong, you'd have gotten a lot worse."

"But... why am I not in a hospital?"

"Pssh!" Yoose said loudly, waving his arm dismissively. "You don't need a doctor! I'll take care of you! And it's extra lucky, because _now_," Yoose tapped the side of his nose, "you can get that break everyone says you need!"

"What? No, I'll be fine," the Once-ler said hurriedly, "I-I'm not that sick and I'm right-handed, so it shouldn't be a problem for me to-"

"Nonsense! I'll take care of you! I think it'll be a good change for this place to get some _good_ housework done around here!"

Ignoring the stab at his pride, the Once-ler opened his mouth to argue, but at that moment he was consumed by a fit of coughing, leaving him curled up on his side, breathing deeply through his mouth. While the Lorax busied himself with making sure the Once-ler was okay, Yoose took the opportunity to walk away before he could stop him, heading to the kitchen and pulling out a variety of pots and pans and turning the stove on. The Once-ler could do nothing but watch, heart clenching in dismay as he realised that, whether he wanted to or not, he would be spending the remainder of the day at least with Yoose. Even worse, he would be taken care of by the man- something he had honestly tried to avoid for the past few days. Emitting a sigh of resignation, the Once-ler sank back into his pillow, pulling his blanket further towards his chin. He closed his eyes and a moment passed, then suddenly he felt two warm, furry paws slowly stroke his forehead.

The Once-ler opened his eyes in surprise, smiling when he saw the huge, bubbly eyes of Pipsqueak staring down at him in worry. Reaching up, the Once-ler scratched Pipsqueak behind the ears, his smile widening when the bear growled quietly in approval.

"He's been sitting with you ever since Melvin got back," the Lorax murmured, and to the Once-ler's surprise, he saw a glint of anger in the orange creature's eyes.

Worried, the Once-ler asked; "Melvin...? Why would he-"

"Because that _idiot_ dumped you on his back and left him by himself so he could run ahead to tell us all how _innocent_ he was!" the Lorax spat, the anger in his eyes building. "He was talking to us for _ages_, saying "I tried to tell him I was fine, but he didn't listen and he got hurt," and all that other _crap_ before Melvin turned up!"

The Once-ler stared wide-eyed at the Lorax during his tirade, his heart thumping loudly. Now he knew. Now he knew what had seemed so odd to him upon waking. Yoose waltzed happily about the tent, humming to himself as he readied their evening meal, but the usual gaggle of animals that followed his every move was nowhere to be seen. They remained in their positions about the room, occasionally shuffling closer to where the Once-ler lay. They spent most of their time glancing fearfully at the Once-ler whenever he happened to cough or wince, and the rest was spent looking at Yoose with unreadable expressions. Yoose seemed unconcerned, but for the Once-ler, it was as if the world had been turned on its head.

The Lorax glanced in the direction that the Once-ler was looking and smiled grimly. "I had wanted to shout and scream my lungs out at Yoose for leaving you behind. I had wanted to kick him out of the forest for what he'd done- for what was _clearly_ his fault, no matter what he tried to say. I held myself back because I thought that these guys," he gestured to the critters, "would hate me for shouting at their friend. But do you know what happened?"

The Once-ler shook his head slowly, his eyes locked onto the Lorax, who continued in a low voice. "When Yoose came back, they ran out to meet him- as usual, I guess. But when they didn't see you with him, they got worried. When Yoose told them that he'd left you behind, they got scared. While Yoose tried to explain what had happened from his point of view, they listened, but none of them believed a word of it. Some even went to look for you. When you got back... it was like he didn't even exist- not until you were safe in bed... All that happened yesterday- you've been out since then, but I think that was mainly due to exhaustion. These guys and I have been keeping an eye on you while you were sleeping- I think they've finally realised what's been going on the past few days." The Lorax paused, grimacing slightly. "Still, I can't say that they hate him yet. I think it's clear that at least a few of them are trying to put him in a good light. He was a good friend to them before, and I think they're afraid to lose that- no matter how horrified they are at him right now."

"So we can't just kick him out yet?"

"Not yet. But we'll see how it all goes."

The Once-ler nodded tiredly, looking back at Pipsqueak. The tiny Bar-ba-loot smiled anxiously at him, then crawled around so that he was lying beside the Once-ler in the area next to his neck and shoulders. The Once-ler shifted to accommodate the creature, then settled, drawing the blankets even further up his body. It wasn't long before he was asleep, his chest rising and falling in time to his soft breathing. The Lorax glanced once more at him before moving away, jumping off the bed and climbing up onto the small table in the middle of the room. He watched Yoose closely as he went about his business, narrowing his eyes. While Yoose didn't notice the Lorax, it seemed he _had_ started to take note of the lack of animals about his ankles. He would pause occasionally, glance over his shoulder at them, stare forlornly for a moment, then return to his work.

'_At least he knows why they're ignoring him,'_ the Lorax thought, smiling in satisfaction. After all, he deserved the treatment he was being given, didn't he? He deserved to be ignored by the creatures that had followed him blindly without even properly knowing their leader. He deserved to have that sad, regretful look on his face while he worked.

. . . Okay, maybe this was going a little too far...

The Lorax cleared his throat, drawing Yoose's attention. The creatures around the room focused their collective gaze on him as well, listening intently. The Lorax crossed his arms and began to pace back and forth on the table, grumbling inaudibly to himself before he cleared his throat a second time and began to speak.

"If you're gonna be staying here tonight, we've gotta get a few things clear," he said calmly, knowing he had Yoose's full attention. "Firstly, I need to ask- why did you leave the Once-ler behind so you could run ahead and tell us your side of the story?"

"Well," Yoose began, fiddling with his hands. "I just thought... you know, 'cause Melvin's a good mare, he'd easily be able to keep Oncie safe-"

"You wanted to make sure we didn't think you were guilty, even though you were."

Yoose flinched at the sharp edge to the Lorax's voice, then nodded slowly. "Yeah, that was pretty much it..." he admitted quietly. "I don't know, I don't have much of an excuse. I shoulda stayed with Oncie, n' made sure he was okay..."

"Yeah, you should have. You also should have listened to him when he told you to get down from the crate pile. Above all that, you shouldn't have made him go to town with you in the first place- he's _sick_, Yoose! And now he's in even worse condition all because you were too much of an _idiot_ to listen to him when he said it wasn't a good idea!" The Lorax took a deep breath, uncrossed his arms and sat down, leaning forward with one hand on his hip. "Look- you can stay for the next two nights, but I'm gonna be _damn clear_ that you are _not_ staying in this forest for another _second_. Got it?"

"Can't I even-"

"_No_," the Lorax interrupted sternly, holding up one of his small, furry hands. "Two more nights, then you're gonna leave this forest, and you are _not_ coming back. Am I clear?"

Yoose sighed, nodding slowly. "Yeah, I got it."

The Lorax's big, bushy moustache twitched in a smirk and he hopped down from the table, making his way to the Once-ler's bed. He tucked himself in beside the tall human, looking once more at Yoose before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

'_Not long now, beanpole...'_ he thought to himself as his consciousness slipped away.

'_Not long now.'_


End file.
